Sunday, July 22, 2012

Dear Doctor,

You may think that projecting an air of confidence inspires trust in your patients. This is likely true. But when you combine that air of overweening confidence with an emphatic statement that my concerns are completely misplaced and that you have "never heard of such a thing", trust is not inspired. Quite the reverse.

In fact, upon returning home and re-visiting the studies that I referenced in our conversation, finding that they are not, after all, "tiny little, irrelevant studies" (as opposed to "major studies done with actual control groups and published by ACOG"), but are rather significant exploratory research being done to test the advisability of prescribing this medication to someone with my condition and published by The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology... well then, at that point I may start to doubt your competence. If you would like me to consider you as an adequate care provider for someone with this condition, you might want to consider staying "up" on the latest research. Unless, of course, you'd prefer to simply listen respectfully to my layman's rundown of the topic and get back to me later. After you read it, too.

No, I didn't send it :P I wish I was the kind of person to be able to THINK of stuff like that soon enough to be relevant and actually SAY it, instead of impotently posting it on my blog two weeks later :P